Our History: Becoming Saint Francis
Established in 1774, our congregation has been affiliated with the Episcopal Church since its founding. For over 235 years, we worshipped at Trinity Episcopal Church until 2012 when Trinity’s vestry voted to leave the Episcopal Church. The Episcopal congregation continued with those members who felt called to continue as Episcopalians and began worshiping in the living rooms of various members. We were fortunate to have local residents like the Rev. John Fisher and the Rev. Bert Hatch come out of retirement to serve as our priests.
As our numbers grew, we needed to find a larger space to worship. Everywhere we turned, we were met with great kindness from those in the community. We became known in the Diocese as the “BBQ Worshiping Community” thanks to a local businessman named Bo Bo Lee, who allowed us to worship in his BBQ restaurant on Sunday mornings. In 2013, we were again blessed when the New First Missionary Baptist Church allowed us to sign a lease to use their historic sanctuary. At the 2022 Diocesan Convention, we were welcomed into the Diocese as a parish.
In addition to Revs. Fisher and Hatch, we have also been blessed by wonderful clergy who have answered the call to serve as our priest-in-charge. Those clergy include the Rev. Dr. Colton Smith, the Rev. Paul Gilbert the Rev. Fred Thompson, the Rev. Bob Blackwell, and the Rev. Bill Coyne. In August of 2023, we called our first full time rector, the Rev. Joseph K. Smith.
Although our story is unusual, it has been a true blessing and positively affected the characteristic of who we are. Our experience has shown us that it is not the building that matters, but the relationships built and the expressions of true Christian love that we have received that make the opportunity to worship together each week so special. We hope you will join us.